One night, when Xiangong was dazed and noticed that Li Ji was tossing and turning and sighing and sobbing, he got up and asked her what was going on.

Because she was taught by the words and deeds of a professional actor in advance, her performance was particularly emotional. Li Ji hugged Xiangong tightly, kept kissing him, and cried and said: "There have been rumors inside and outside the palace that I have confused the monarch, plotted to abolish the prince, shook the office, and disturbed the country. The concubine has become an enemy of the country, and she can no longer bear this pressure, so please kill me to thank the prince and the countrymen, and don't fight against the entire Jin kingdom because of one woman! Don't push the prince to the point of murdering his father! Otherwise, the concubine will really become a sinner of the state! ”

Xiangong said: "The prince is famous for his loyalty, filial piety and benevolence in the Jin Kingdom, how can he be benevolent to his subjects but cannot tolerate his father? He will never be bad to the widow, and the widow will protect you. ”

Li Ji said: "The love of the small people is called 'benevolence', and the rulers regard patriots as 'benevolence'. Therefore, those who govern the country have no personal relatives, and regard the countrymen as relatives. When the interests of the state are endangered by someone, the ruler will definitely get rid of him to protect the public interest; So, even if the crown prince is not good for the monarch, what is strange? If you kill one person and get a country, anyone will do it, right? And this is what King Wu did back then!

"Wu Geng is known as a virtuous person, if he kills the king of Zhou first and seizes the throne, where will the king of Wu have a reason to cut down, and where can the Zhou Dynasty be established? King Ping's killing of King Youwang is praised by the world, which shows that not all those who kill their father and seize the throne are called 'chaotic ministers and thieves'. If the prince can't bear to kill the concubine, then hand over the monarchy to the prince, let's retreat to other towns, and follow the example of Lu Yingong back then, isn't it also good? ”

Xiangong is a person who values power more than life, and he has gone through many disasters and crawled over piles of bones of his clansmen's blood relatives before he sat firmly on the throne of the monarch; Therefore, for him, only the day of death is the time to give up the power of the king.

Xiangong said: "You also know the fate of Lu Yingong, the monarch cannot abdicate. The widows were known to the princes for their martial prowess and prestige. Being forced to abdicate while alive cannot be described as 'martial', and being unable to control one's son cannot be described as 'mighty'. I will hand over the monarchy to Shen Sheng, and the princes will definitely break off relations with the Jin State; Those who dare to break off diplomatic relations with the Jin State will dare to endanger the Jin State. It is absolutely intolerable for a widow to lose his throne and the country to be endangered, nor is it the 'benevolence' of a widow. You don't have to worry, the widow will deal with Shen Sheng. ”

Li Ji then said, "If you want to solve all this, send him to crusade against the Higashiyama Gaoluo clan!" If he fails, he will become a sinner in the Jin Kingdom; If he wins, he will become more and more arrogant and do unrighteous things. Then he will be able to be punished. ”

Jin Xiangong praised again and again, and he announced Shen Sheng as the supreme commander of the conquest army at the court meeting the next day. In the face of the doctors' doubts, Xiangong announced his retirement from the dynasty without giving any explanation.

Shi Ping had been kicked out of the center of power by Jin Xiangong at this time. Jin Xiangong did not doubt his loyalty, but was dissatisfied with his position (on the abolition of the crown prince), and was also worried that Shi Bao's huge influence would strengthen the prince's strength.

As a result, the original first hero of the office, who single-handedly eliminated all the political enemies of the Gong, has now become a person who can't even enter the Inner Dynasty - this great Sikong is being sent out by the Duke of Xian to repair the city wall of the Manjin Kingdom, and he can't come back once a year.

One of the recent rising political stars of the Jin state is Zhongda Furick, who was promoted from the lower army, which is even more indicative of his special status (since it is widely believed that the generals of the lower army are not to be treated in public favor).

No one can change Rick's straightforward personality and stubborn temper, and Rick doesn't take the lessons of Shi Peng's loss of power to heart. Rick followed the priest to the backyard and said to him, "The prince should be good at the sacrifices, manage the offerings, and serve the king's diet day and night; Therefore, the crown prince is also called 'mound'. When the monarch travels, the prince guards the country, and when others guard the country, the prince follows the monarch. The peers are called 'Fuche', and the garrison is called 'Jianguo', which is an ancient system.

"Leading a division to go out on an expedition requires planning arbitrarily and commanding the army, which is the power and responsibility of the monarch and the prince, not the prince. The commander must be autocratic; If the prince obeys the king's orders, he will lose his majesty, and the autocratic power will be accused of unfilial piety; Therefore the son-in-law of the monarch shall not lead the teacher. The monarch's orders were at fault, and the crown prince was not majestic, how could the army prevail? Besides, the Gaoluo clan has formed an alliance with the Lu people and is about to start a big war with the Jin State, so the prince should immediately change the commander! ”

Jin Xiangong said with a dark face: "There are so many sons of widows, and it is not yet known who will eventually become the crown prince." ”

Rick was speechless for a moment, and his face looked extremely angry. He didn't even say goodbye to Xiangong, but withdrew with a blushing face and without saying a word. Rick came out of the palace and went to see the prince, and he recounted his conversation with the prince to the prince. The prince's mood was very low, and he was silent for a long time before he spoke: "I'm going to be abolished, right?" ”

Rick did not answer his question directly, but said, "The monarch has ordered the crown prince to govern the people of Quwo, and now he has sent the prince on a campaign. You should be worried about whether you will be able to fulfill your mandate, and why should you worry about being deposed? Moreover, the son of a man is most afraid of unfilial piety, and he is not afraid of whether he will be established; Only by cultivating oneself and not blaming others can one be saved from calamity. ”

On a certain day in October in winter, Jin Xiangong gave troops to the Jin army in Taimiao. The costume worn by the prince that day shocked those present: it was a symmetrical garment of left and right color, half black and half white; He also wore a cake of bronze jue around his waist.

Jin Xiangong said a lot of uplifting words during the ceremony, and finally asked Shen Sheng to "return with all the enemy". After the ceremony, Shen Sheng led the second army to set off. At that time, his royal Rong was a fox protrusion, and the right side of the car was a friend; The deputy marshal is Hanyi, Liang Yuzi raises Yurong, and Xiandanmu is the right of the car; Yang Yu Tu is a military lieutenant (military judge).

Shen Sheng's chariot marched in parallel with Hanyi's. Xianyou was born with a good heart, and when he saw Shen Sheng sullen, he comforted him and said: "Half of the prince's clothes are the same color as those of the prince, and he holds the military power of the country, and he will make meritorious contributions here!" You have to work hard! ”

But Hu Tu obviously didn't want Shen Sheng to fall into a misunderstanding, but wanted him to recognize the current situation, he sighed and said: "Winter is the season of slaughter, the color of the clothes shows the identity of the gentleman, and the accessories show the inner thoughts. Therefore, if war is valued, it should be fought in the spring and autumn; If you are in line with the status of the crown prince, you should wear a uniform dress of solid color; To show the purity of the heart, one should wear appropriate jade.

"Now at the end of the year, the breath of heaven and earth is closed; Wearing a variegated uniform is a sign of alienation; Wearing Jin Jue shows that it is cool. Use clothes to alienate, use seasons to block; Cold, cold, winter, killing; Jin, Han, Jue, Li; What kind of fight? You can do your best, but will the enemy be able to kill them all? ”

Liang Yu Ziyang also joined the discussion, saying: "Whether the commander receives orders at the ancestral temple or accepts sacrifices at the shrine, he must wear fixed clothing. Now that the crown prince has obtained a set of concubines, the monarch's mind can be imagined! Even death can't wash away the charge of unfilial piety, so it's better to go away and fly high! ”

Xiandanmu said: "This kind of variegated clothes will not be worn even by people who have been bitten by a mad dog. Besides, the prince sent an order and said, 'Return to the enemy', can the enemy kill them all? Even if the enemy is exhausted, there are still traitors in the country, knowing that the future is dangerous, it is better to flee now. ”

Sheep Tongue Tu interjected on the side: "No! Disobedience and unfilial piety, abandonment and disloyalty. Although he knows the cold, he can't give up loyalty and filial piety; It is better to die in battle than to flee! He swept his menacing gaze over everyone as he spoke.

People did not dare to speak out, because Yang Yutu was a military judge, and his status was second only to that of the deputy marshal. The man was born with a zombie face, and when he spoke, he had no expression at all, which was creepy; And he was never merciful to those who violated military law.

People avoided the sheep's tongue and turned to look at Hanyi, who pretended not to hear anything, staring ahead and keeping silent.